Folding mechanism

ABSTRACT

A means for continuously folding a fabric band into a shape adapted for edging fabric material. The mechanism includes an elongated guide plate having a series of retaining means for securing the band against the guide plate as it moves lengthwise. A first fold means bends or folds opposite edges of the band towards one another and over a core element. A second fold means or former which is positioned at the end of the guide plate to receive the twice-folded band, includes a narrow channel adapted to receive a portion of the band intermediate the two firstformed folds to effect a third fold.

United States Patent [191 Shulman [451 Feb. 12, 1974 FOLDING MECHANISM [75] lnventor: Charles R. Shulman, Swampscott,

Mass.

[22] Filed: Sept. 8, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 287,478

1,167,777 1/1916 Moffatt 112/138 Primary Examiner-H. Hampton Hunter Attorney, Agent, or FirmDavid Wolf; Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks [57] ABSTRACT A means for continuously folding a fabric band into a shape adapted for edging fabric material. The mechanism includes an elongated guide plate having a series of retaining means for securing the band against the guide plate as it moves lengthwise. A first fold means bends or folds opposite edges of the band towards one another and over a core element. A second fold means or former which is positioned at the end of the guide plate to receive the twice-folded band, includes a narrow channel adapted to receive a portion of the band intermediate the two first-formed folds to effect a third fold.

4 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures 3,791,324 1 2 FOLDING MECHANISM DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION EMBODIMENT It is conventional in the shoe or other related industries to obtain binding material in large rolls containing many yards of binding. The binding itself is generally preformed with the opposite side edges folded over toward one another. Binding with these two folds is generally fed by a sewing machine operator into folded relation with the edge of the fabric material to which the binding is to be stitched. Generally, this binding material is folded by a machine operator with a portion on either side of the fabric which is being bound. Prefolded bindings are ordinarily used by shoe manufacturers in enormous quantities and consequently the total cost of such binding becomes a significant part of the shoe manufacturers overall costs. The costs of the binding material itself is in large measure controlled by the costs of folding the edges.

The shoe manufacturer also incurs significant expense because it requires a sewing machine'operator with greater skills to efficiently simultaneously fold a third time the already folded binding, position it over the edge and simultaneously stitch it to a piece of fabrIc.

SIMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes many of the difficulties inherent in the use of prefolded binding material in binding or edging pieces of fabric such, for example, as are used in the vamps of canvas footwear. The present invention has provided a means and method for continuously folding an elongated length of flat, narrow fabric into a multiply folded configuration suitable for binding the edge of fabric material. An object of the present invention is to provide an improved means for continuously folding and stitching a band to a piece of fabric material to form a binding over the edge of the fabric material. One further object of the present invention is to provide a very efficient means for continuously forming a binding over the edge of fabric material. Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved mechanism for multiply folding an elongated flat band of fabric material into a shape adapted to be stitched as a binding or edging to a piece of fabric material.

In the present invention there is provided means for continually folding an elongated length ofa flat, narrow fabric band into a plurality of lengthwise-extending, parallel folds. This means comprises an elongated guide plate along which the band is moved from a first to a second end. A plurality of means along the guide plate retain the band against the guide plate. The folding means for folding the opposite sides of the band towards one another includes a core over which the fabric is drawn and folded. A second fold or forming means is provided at the end of the guide plate and is designed to receive an intermediate portion of the already twice-folded fabric band to reform or reshape this intermediate portion into a third fold. The mechanism is used in conjunction with a sewing machine in which the means for folding is secured to the sewing machine with the second folding means or former immediately adjacent the sewing machine needle so that the needle engages the folded band as it leaves the second former.

The foregoing objects and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a folding means embodying the principles of the present invention, and as used in conjunction with a sewing machine;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring now to the drawings and in particular to FIG. 1, there is shown a top plan view of the folding mechanism of the present invention, generally indicated by the reference character 10. The folding mechanism 10 comprises a guide plate 12 having an input end 14 for receiving an elongated length of a flat, narrow fabric band 16 shown most clearly in FIG. 2. The input end 14 of the guide plate includes an attaching member 18 for securing the folding mechanism onto or adjacent a sewing machine, for example. The member 18 may be provided with a slot 20 through which a bolt 22 passes for adjustably securing the folding mechanism in proper position adjacent the sewing machine needle which is disposed adjacent the output end 24 of the guide plate 12.

The folding mechanism also comprises a first folding means 26, which is most clearly shown in FIG. 2, and a second folding means or forming means 28. The first folding means folds the opposite sides of the band towards one another and the second folding means or forming means is provided adjacent the output end 24 of the guide plate for receiving an intermediate portion of the already twice-folded fabric band to reform or reshape this intermediate portion into a third fold. This means 28 is shown most clearly in FIG. 5.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, the input end 14 of the guide plate receives the fabric band 16 which passes between a retaining means 30 in the form of a pair of tabs 32 extending towards each other and maintaining the band between the retaining means 30 and the guide plate 12.

As the fabric continues through the first retaining means 30, the fabric enters the first folding means 26 for providing a first double fold. Means 26 comprises a funnel-shaped housing 36 having top and bottom converging walls 38 and 40, respectively, for directing the fabric 16 about the core 42'. FIG. 3 shows a cross sectional view through the first folding means 26 showing the position of the fabric band about the core 42. The core 42 may be integrally fabricated with the casing 36 and includes a horizontal member 44 and a vertical member 46 having its midpoint connected to horizontal bridging member 44. The vertically extending member 46 is also defined by edge walls 48 that define the top and bottom of member 46. These walls 48 may also converge in a similar manner to the walls 38 and 40 defining casing 36.

After the fabric 16 has passed through the first folding means 26, the fabric continues to pass adjacent guide plate 12. In FIG. 2 there is shown U-shaped retaining clamps 50 and 52 spacedly disposed along plate 12 for holding the double folded fabric 16 adjacent and preferably touching the inner surface of plate 12. FIG. 4 which is a cross sectional view taken along line 44 of FIG. 2 shows the double folded fabric 16, the U- shaped retaining means 52 and the plate 12 which also has a U-shaped cross section after the folding means 26. The retaining means 52 may be secured to the plate 12 in any conventional manner such as by the use of rivets.

As the double folded fabric passes from the output end 24 of the guide plate 12, the fabric passes to the former 28 which may be a block 54 of material having a concave recess 56 extending therealong. The needle 60 is disposed on the opposite side of former 28.

The cross sectional view of FIG. 5 taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 1 shows a sheet of fabric 62 to which the folded edge fabric 16 is to be attached. Thus, the former 28 provides the third intermediate fold in the edge fabric 16, and by properly positioning the sheet fabric 62 the edge material 16 is ready for attachment preferably by stitching to thesheet material 62. This stitching is provided by needle 60 (see FIG. 1) which is disposed adjacent the end of former 28 and, in addition to providing the stitching, holds both the edge materials 16 and the sheetmaterial 62 in relative fixed position so that the attachment of the edge material can be quickly and efficiently accomplished. By making the guide plate 12 arcuate in shape, as depicted in FIG. 1, along atleast a portion of its length, the edge material 16 is maintained in relatively tight frictional relationship with the guide plate and thus the edge fabric is kept taut as it is being drawn through the guide plateby means of the stitching action of needle 60. Needle 60 is preferably positioned close to block 54.

Having described one embodiment for the apparatus for the present invention it should now be obvious that numerous other embodiments and modifications thereof should fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention which is defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A device for continuously folding an elongated length of a flat, narrow fabric band into a plurality of lengthwise extending parallel folds comprising;

an elongated guide plate along which said band is moved from a first end to a second end,

said plate having an arcuate curvature along the length thereof and opposite elongated ridges defining a channel for maintaining 'the fabric band in place,

means disposed along said guide plate to retain said band adjacent said guide plate as said band moves from said first end to said second end,

said retaining means including spaced clamps secured at opposite ends to said opposite elongated ridges,

means at the first end of the guide plate for receiving said band in a flat condition and including a pair of tabs directed toward each other,

first folding means disposed at the first end for folding opposite sides of said band toward one another as said band is drawn therethrough,

said first folding means comprising converging walls against which opposite sides of said band contact, and core means about which said opposite sides extend,

said core means including first and second integrally formed members, said first member having edges spaced from said converging walls, and directed angularly to said guide plate,

said converging walls having an interconnecting wall forming an enclosure about said core means, said second member of said core means being attached to said interconnecting wall,

second folding means disposed adjacent the second end of said guide plate for receiving the folded band from said first folding means and providing a third fold intermediate the two first-formed folds,

said second folding means including a block having a transverse concave channel,

and a needle, said channel, needle and second end of said guide plate being in line.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the input end of said core means is spaced from the guide plate and the output end converges toward the guide plate.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the first member is slightly arcuate in the longitudinal direction.

4. The device of claim 3 wherein the retaining clamps are U-shaped. 

1. A device for continuously folding an elongated length of a flat, narrow fabric band into a plurality of lengthwise extending parallel folds comprising; an elongated guide plate along which said band is moved from a first end to a second end, said plate having an arcuate curvature along the length thereof and opposite elongated ridges defining a channel for maintaining the fabric band in place, means disposed along said guide plate to retain said band adjacent said guide plate as said band moves from said first end to said second end, said retaining means including spaced clamps secured at opposite ends to said opposite elongated ridges, means at the first end of the guide plate for receiving said band in a flat condition and including a pair of tabs directed toward each other, first folding means disposed at the first end for folding opposite sides of said band toward one another as said band is drawn therethrough, said first folding means comprising converging walls against which opposite sides of said band contact, and core means about which said opposite sides extend, said core means including first and second integrally formed members, said first member having edges spaced from said converging walls, and directed angularly to said guide plate, said converging walls having an interconnecting wall forming an enclosure about said core means, said second member of said core means being attached to said interconnecting wall, second folding means disposed adjacent the second end of said guide plate for receiving the folded band from said first folding means and providing a third fold intermediate the two first-formed folds, said second folding means including a block having a transverse concave channel, and a needle, said channel, needle and second end of said guide plate being in line.
 2. The device of claim 1 wherein the input end of said core means is spaced from the guide plate and the output end converges toward the guide plate.
 3. The device of claim 2 wherein the first member is slightly arcuate in the longitudinal direction.
 4. The device of claim 3 wherein the retaining clamps are U-shaped. 